This newsmagazine means the title of its editorial for this week in both the literal and figurative sense.
Progress, after all, should not be counted in just how many buildings or structures a local government manages to build but also in the intangible benefits these new facilities bring to its residents.
Last week, the city government of Biñan, Laguna, in its celebration of the three-day “Araw ng Biñan,” led a marathon of inaugurations and groundbreaking activities of its new facilities – new schoolbuildings, a new hospital and health care center, and new cultural and government installations, and new housing projects.
Critics are sure to question the sheer amount of money spent in building these massive infrastructure projects or deride them as simply “decorations” or “white elephants” that will fall into disrepair in a few years.
But all it takes is a close look at the larger picture – and we’ll see what Biñan City’s officials meant when they look into these projects as investments for a brighter future.
After all, let’s face it: our political landscape has been marred by shortsightedness, fiscally and politically.
Most of our traditional politicians often settle for projects that can be built quickly and cheaply (and, may we point out, can be emblazoned with their names) – thus, the propensity to build basketball courts or streetlights or road repairs that cause more hardships than benefits to motorists.
While the costs of many of the large-ticket projects the city government of Biñan recently inaugurated can be called into question later, let’s think of it this way: what about the material and immaterial benefits it could bring?
How many more schoolchildren will benefit from the new classrooms? How many residents will now have a safe and secure place to raise their families? How many patients are now assured of quality healthcare service?
We need more leaders who can think beyond their terms and provide long-term solutions that will serve not only this generation but our children, who will inherit the future that we create.
And what the city government of Biñan did is an ideal example of that forward thinking that other LGUs in the country can emulate.
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